Universal foot support



H. E. STARK UNIVERSAL FOOT SUPPORT July 16, 1940.

Filed Sept. 3, 1938 Patented Jul 16, 1940 UNIVERSAL roo'rsorroa r Halworth E. Stark, Chicago, Ill.," assignor to Dr. Woods Foot Appliance" (10., Chicago, 111., a

corporation of Ohio Application September 3, 1938, Serial No. 228,309

This invention relates to a universal foot support, and more particularly to the type of foot support which is readily insertable in a shoe'or other article of footwear beneath or over :the afflicted or painful part of the foot, although the invention may have other uses and purposes as will be apparent to one skilled in the art.

I am aware that in the past many and various foot supporting devices have been developed, but in all instances of which I am aware each of these formerly known devices has been developed'to perform a specificcorrective function in relation to the foot and had to be disposed beneath a particular part of the foot or the device would not perform its specific function. In other words, each device had only one function and, of necessity, could occupy only one location in an article of footwear or it would not perform the particular corrective operation for which it was designed but might cause further injury to the foot of the user. i f

In some instances, combination supports were designed in that a single support was made to provide pressure beneath the inner longitudinal arch and also provide pressure beneath the anterior or metatarsal arch. However, the device had only one position within a shoe and would aid only the particular aflliction or afllictions for which it was especially designed. Further, many of these formerly known supporting devices were also designed for permanent positioning within a shoe or other article of footwear. They could not feasibly be transferred from one shoe to another, and in the event a user overcame a weak metatarsal arch with the aid of the appliance and then suifered'from apainful heel, a new appliance had to be purchased for 'thecorrection of the latter aiiiiction. r g

With the foregoing in mind, it is an important object of the present invention to provide what may be termed a universal foot support or appliance, in that the support may be positioned in substantially any desirable location within a shoe, depending upon what part of the foot is afflicted.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a universal foot support or appliance embodying a unitary device which may be positioned in a desired location in a shoe and which in and of itself will provide aid and relief for various foot ailments, such as flat foot, painful heel, outer arch weakness, cuboid trouble, metatarsalgia, bunions, heel blisters, etc.

A furtherobject of. the invention is the provision of a foot supporting device positionable inv substantially any desirable location within a shoe, andwhich is constructed so that it stays in place without any additional securing means and may be readily changed from one shoe to another.

It is also an object of the invention to provide 6 a foot supporting device which is substantially self-adjusting and self-conformable to the shoe and the foot of a user, so that it exerts gentle pressure upon the foot where such pressure is needed.

Still another object of the-invention is the provision of a resilient foot support or appliance which may be placed under, around or on top of the foot at any point where the device feels most comfortable to the user. 15

Still a further feature of the invention is the provision of a foot support having substantially the shape of a disk with a flat undersurface, a convex upper surface, and which is of such size as to buckle in a portion thereof when placed in most positions within a shoe, to aid in insuring that the device will remain in a desired location within the shoe.

A still furtherobject of. this invention is to provide an appliance which may function as a support or a pressure relieving member, as desired, and which may be positioned substantially where desired in a shoe, and changed from one position to another or from one shoe to another, as needed. 1 30 While some of the more salient features, characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been above pointed out, others will become apparent from the following disclosures, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which: 7

Figure l is a diagrammatic view indicating various dispositions of a support embodying principles of the present invention in a shoe or similar article of footwear;

Figure 2 is a plan view of a preferred form of the device itself;

made of sponge rubber or equivalent resilient material. The pad 5 preferably has a substantially fiat undersurface 6 and a convex upper sur-' face. The thickest portion of the pad is preferably in the central region thereof, and the pad tapers to a relatively thin edge 1.

Over the pad 5, a smooth cover 8 of any suitable material, such as flexible kidskin, is disposed so that the cover extends beyond the periphery or circumference of the pad a short distance, as indicated at 9. The cover may be secured to the pad in any suitable manner, such as by cementing. Both the pad and cover are preferably of the same general peripheral shape, and the thin edge 1 coupled with the projection of the cover as at 9 insures a smooth, tight contact with the inside of the shoe.

The support is preferably made in two sizes only, small for ladies shoes and large for men's shoes, although it will be apparent that youthful and in-between sizes may be incorporated, if so desired. The preferable size of. the pad is such that its diameter will more than span the major portion of the insole of the shoe, especially at the shank of the shoe. Consequently, when placed in a shoe as illustrated in Figure 4, the pad is somewhat deformed or buckled and is therefore much less likely to shift positions, even though the shoe may be repeatedly placed upon and removed from the foot.

In Figure 4, a diagrammatic indication of a shoe is illustrated including the usual upper H], the customary insole H and the outsole I 2. In this instance, the support has been placed substantially evenly in the forward part of the shank portion of the shoe, so that both sides of the support are buckled against the shoe upper, as indicated at l-3|3. The gripping of quasi-adhesive action of the rubber undersurface is materially enhanced by this buckling, and the pad remains firmly in its selected position within the shoe. At the same time, the pad may be readily removed from the shoe with little eifort and be placed in another shoe or in the same shoe in a different location.

The universal character or versatility of the present invention is indicated to a partial degree in Figure l. The insole H of the shoeis diagrammatically illustrated and certain locations of the support indicated. For example, the full line position i l corresponds with the showing in Figure 4.. The dotted line portions [30-4311 of the position i l indicate approximately the part that is buckled, indicated at l3-l3 in Figure 4. When placed in this position, the resilient support is beneficial to various foot ailments or affiictions, such as painful great toe, trouble at the ball of the loot, callouses, metatarsalgia, etc.

When the device is placed in the dotted line position it, it will be beneficial to a fallen or weak inner longitudinal arch and also relieve painful heel and other disorders occurrent in this region of the foot. In this position, it will be noted that only one side of the support will buckle when placed in the shank portion of the shoe, thereby causing the support to materially aid the inner longitudinal arch of the foot.

When the device is placed .in the position l6,

scribed, and it is simply necessary to curl the de- 10 vice around the inner side Wall part of the shoe rearwardly of the first metatarsal joint, the major part of the appliance being in contact with;

the shoe upper.

It will therefore be appreciated that the device may be positioned in various other locations, such, for example, as behind a tailors bunion, directly beneath the os calcis, over the top of the instep as a tongue pad, substantially vertically against the counter of a shoe to relieve or prevent heel blisters, etc.

In short, the device may be placed in any position within a shoe where it will be of most benefit to the wearer. While it is appreciated that the substantially circular contour of the device facilitates its ready positioning and also facilitates the gripping action of the device against the shoe so that it will stay in position, the size of the device also maintains it in position and causes the device to be automatically self-adjusting and self-conforming both to the foot and the shoe. On the other hand, it will be appre ciated that the nearly exact circular shape is not an absolute essential, but this shape may be varied somewhat without departing from the principles of the invention.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that I have provided a novel foot support or appliance of hereon otherwise than is necessitated'by the prior art.

I claim as my invention: A foot-correcting pad adapted to be variously positioned in a shoe and also adapted to be reversely bent as-a toe cushion in the shoe, said pad consisting of a circular piece of sponge rubber having a flat under surface for gripping contact with the insole and upper of a shoe, said pad having a cross section such that it defines a convex central section tapering to a thin peripheral section, and having a diameter greater than the width of the insole with which it is to be used. the upper surface of said pad being covered with a soft leather cover which exttnds evenly beyond the peripheral edge of the pad.

. HALWORTH E. STARK. 

